Pittsburghers have plenty of ideas about what their town’s all about, from its landmarks and views to its food and drinks. But what about its sounds? That’s the question artist and architect Susan Narduli is asking with “Immersion: A Pittsburgh Sound Portrait,” the installation she’s creating for the new Pittsburgh International Airport. The work consists of directional speakers pointed at the new terminal’s escalators and playing a variety of sounds representing the city.
During the past year, the Los Angeles-based Narduli and her team have collected or personally recorded more than 100 sounds. “We’re looking for sounds people could recognize and they would be meaningful,” she said. Asked to provide samples, she offered sounds including ice-scraping and children placing their orders at the famous Gus and Yiayia’s North Side ice-ball cart; a freight train making its way through the Mon Valley; birdsong from the National Aviary; and organ music and liturgical singing at St. Anthony’s Chapel, in Troy Hill.
Read more and listen to the interview at WESA.
Originally published: December 2, 2024
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